This is what curly leaves on tomatoes mean (and what you can do about it)

Once you grow your own tomatoes , you’ll never want to go back to supermarket tomatoes. The taste of your own tomatoes is unbeatable – and you have a much wider variety to choose from. Growing tomatoes doesn’t have to be difficult, but you’ll undoubtedly encounter unexpected things. What about curly leaves on tomatoes, for example?

If the leaves on your tomato plant start to curl, this can have several causes. First of all, there are species whose leaves grow a little curlier than other species. So, not really something to worry about.

Curling tomato leaves can mean that your plants are stressed. For example, because the conditions were just a little too cold when you planted the plant. Pruning too much can also cause stress.

Do you only see curled leaves at the top of the plant? Then the plant has probably absorbed more energy (food) than it can get rid of at that moment. In general, you will not see any fruits on the plant at this stage.

In addition, changing temperatures can lead to curling leaves. With tomatoes in a greenhouse, you will see that the leaves of the plants closest to the entrance will curl sooner.

In many cases the curling leaves will disappear by themselves. In the case of a plant with too much energy, you will see the curl disappear as soon as fruits appear on the plant.

If you have to deal with very variable temperatures, then unfortunately there is little you can do about that outdoors. In a greenhouse you can provide shade in bright sunlight and very warm temperatures. For example, hang up a fleece. Remove it when a cooler period is coming. Keep ventilating your greenhouse, because a lack of ventilation can promote all kinds of (fungal) diseases.